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Visiting Reina Sofia, Prado, Retiro Park sights - Is this doable?

Posted by (Houston, Texas, USA) on

Thanks in advance for your patience in answering my many questions about our trip to Spain. I'm one of those travelers who suffers from FOMO (fear of missing out) and needs to have everything planned in advance to allay my anxiety. Here is my current plan for our first day in Madrid (arriving by train from Cordoba about 10:30 am), which is a Sunday. Based on my research, we will need to visit the Reina Sofia on Sunday November 10th as we will be in Toledo on Monday and it is closed on Tuesday. I wish that I'd allowed more time in Madrid but perhaps we'll be able to return!

Our only must see in the Reina Sofia is the Guernica, so I think we can get in and out of this museum quickly. I believe that admission to the museum is free for those over 65 of any nationality. In any case, it's free on Sundays from 1:30-7:00 pm but we would prefer to beat that crowd.

Visiting art Museums is not our primary interest when traveling (though we've been to many of the major ones) but we do plan to visit the Prado and do the "what you can see in 3 hours self-guided tour."

So here's the plan:
Arrive Madrid Atocha at 10:30 or 10:40; taxi to Hotel Moderno near Puerta del Sol to drop off luggage. Take taxi to Reina Sofia or Metro Line 1 to Estacion del Artes.
12:00-1:00 See Guernica at Reina Sofia; grab quick takeaway for lunch; walk to Prado
1:30-4:30 or 5 Tour Prado (If we need to see more, we'll stay later or return on Tuesday during the free evening hours

We would also like to see the venues in Retiro Park that are part of the Reina Sofia (Venue Parque del Retiro. Palacio de Velázquez and Palacio de Cristal. (These may be closed for installation of a new exhibit but I hope not!) Are these open on Tuesday? If so, we'll see them when we go to Retiro Park on Tuesday afternoon. If they are only open on Sunday, we'll walk to Retiro to see these after leaving the Prado. I have read comments that these are free to enter.

Thanks as always!

Posted by
27111 posts

I hit the three major art museums in Madrid in May 2016. It goes without saying that things may have changed since then. I think your museum plans will work out OK, but I'll share my experience in case it helps.

The Reina Sofia was not busy at all except for people standing in front of "Guernica". Not a mob, but enough to make viewing it less than ideal. I wandered off to see a nearby room or two and when I returned, there was almost no one else viewing the painting. So head there first, but be prepared to wander off for a few minutes to wait for better conditions if you need to.

There were definitely more folks in the Prado, but there were only two paintings with sizable groups of people parked in front of them: Bosch's "Tree of Life" and "Las Meninas". Those are the ones I think you're most likely to need to loop back to see under less-crowded conditions, so plan your visit to hit those rooms early.

I haven't actually been inside Retiro Park, so I can't help you there. I did enjoy the nearby Botanical Garden, which has a modest admission charge.

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